Identifying cheap energy for the future

PV

A new report is forecasting that 2015 will turn out to be a banner year for solar power in the United States, with the last 3 months of the year showing a large spike. While the 6.2 gigawatts of solar… Read More ›

Game-over Some people might think that the recent drop in oil price is bad for the solar industry, that it’ll slow down investment and reduce demand for clean energy. There might be some truth to that in the short-term, but… Read More ›

Latin America is the global frontier for unsubsidized solar markets. With high insolation levels and growing demand, it is positioned to be one of the most attractive regions on the planet for solar development. Eyeing the region’s potential, GTM Research… Read More ›

(Dec 8th 2014) Solar researchers at University of New South Wales have converted over 40% of the sunlight hitting a solar system into electricity, the highest efficiency ever reported. The world-beating efficiency was achieved in outdoor tests in Sydney, before being… Read More ›

PV polysilicon and wafer costs will drop to record low below $0.2/Watt in 2014. According to NPD Solarbuzz, average manufacturing costs for tier one integrated polysilicon and PV wafer makers will fall below the record low of $0.20/W in 2014…. Read More ›

Here’s a surprising new fact about energy in the United States: the percentage of our electricity coming from the greenest sources — that is, the non-hydroelectric renewables such as solar, wind, geothermal and biomass — has doubled in just four years… Read More ›

Now there’s a big difference between what’s technically possible and what’s technically, politically, and financially practical, but a new study of the solar power potential of the US should give great pause. PV Magazine reports that NREL’s new analysis of… Read More ›

The two solar inverter companies, German SMA Solar and American Enphase, recently reporting their Q1 2012 performances (with strong results for both), had radically different views about the future. We found three possible explanations: 1. SMA seems to be in… Read More ›

A new working paper argues that common perceptions about the lack of competitiveness of solar photovoltaic power are misleading and out-of-date. Power generated from solar photovoltaic (PV) panels is much closer to competitiveness with conventional electricity generation than many policy-makers… Read More ›

A new report from the prominent global consulting firm McKinsey shows why solar photovoltaics have hit a tipping point. As the economics of solar PV continue to improve steadily and dramatically, McKinsey analysts conclude that the yearly “economic potential” of… Read More ›